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Category: Management
The power of paying attention
“Teeth…ignore them and they will go away.” -1960’s ADA media message
The phrase quoted above has been embedded in my brain for over 50 years, and it has worked for me. Other than my 3rd molars, I still have all my teeth.
Let’s move from teeth to turnover. In today’s business workplace adequate staffing is one of the biggest concerns to deal with. How do we find good people and keep them? Often, it is all about paying attention. Here is an example: I have a friend who recently quit his job. Here’s what happened: When he was hired a year ago top management told him how much they appreciated and encouraged new ideas that can make the company more profitable. That excited Phil and he began looking right and left for ways to preserve profit and generate more revenue. His ideas were detailed and well thought out. He began presenting them. Top management did not respond or acknowledge them. That was discouraging for Phil, and over time his eagerness subsided. He became “checked out”, and no longer felt he could represent the company with the right attitude. He resigned and it was an amicable departure.
The best we can tell, about 90% of turnover is a result of dissatisfaction with an immediate supervisor. What is the cause of that dissatisfaction? Too many times it is the preoccupation or lack of attention to our direct reports. Let’s remember the most important objective of a manager: “To build others and make them more successful”. To do that, we need to pay attention, welcome their ideas, and carefully weigh them. Otherwise, we can ignore them, and they will go away!
Getting in the “mood” for success
“Successful people form the habit of doing things that failures don’t like to do” `
` -Albert Gray: “The Common Denominator of Success”
Do you have a vision? With all your gifts and abilities, do you have a picture of what you want to achieve, and who you want to become? Let’s assume the answer is “yes” to both of these questions. Next step: A plan of action!
We know that realizing your vision will require much planning, persistence, and hard work. When we plan, we list all the tasks, activities, and resources we need to make the vision happen. We categorize and prioritize these tasks and list them in proper sequence. Once we have our momentum established, we will be doing specific things each day that are taking us toward our vision. But what if we are not in the mood to do our “single daily action”? It doesn’t make any difference! We have planned well and we know that the task before us is the most important thing we need to be doing.
Here’s an example: My first task today was writing this blog. My first thought was, “I’m not in a writing mood today.” Then my special self-discipline angel on my shoulder gave me some tough love: “Steve, the deadline for your newsletter is this week. You know this is the most important thing you should be doing now. Do it, whether you want to or not!” I did. Here it is. How do you like it? (Now I’m in the mood!)
I conclude by asking another question posed by Albert Gray: Do you prefer pleasing methods or pleasing results? Your answer to this question can tell you where you are at with “The Common Denominator of Success”.
A professional approach that builds trust
Here’s a question for you: What is the difference between “nagging” and “gentle persistence”? I am not sure I have the exact answer. I do know that when someone nags me, I can get irritated, yet if they persist in a gentle and gracious way, I am much more motivated.
A couple years ago I sent an email to a person in a marketing company. He was doing a project for me, and I had something I wanted to add. When I wrote Jason, I forgot to copy the president – something which I had agreed to always do. A short time later, I received this email from the president:
“Hi Steve: Just a friendly reminder to “cc” me when requesting projects from the staff. I really don’t mind, but if I know they are working on a project for you, I won’t interrupt them with other projects if i can avoid it. Thanks, J
I was impressed. Not only was the approach friendly and respectful, she took the time to state the WIFM. (What’s in in for me) I was not upset by this email. Quite the contrary, I was upset with myself for the error of omission. I promised myself I would stick to my commitment and always “cc” the president. I have kept that commitment.
This was a good approach that received my full cooperation. What if the email had a nasty tone like “As mentioned previously, I expect a “cc” when…” The president chose the high road. She was probably irritated that I forgot, then quickly shifted to solving the problem. That’s professionalism!
Learn from mistakes…grow from successes
I have coached and trained almost my entire career. Helping others achieve growth means leading people out of their comfort zones so that they may enjoy a desired new ability. Here is a key fundamental: We learn from our mistakes and we grow from our successes. I share this example:
A couple weeks ago on Christmas day a neighbor boy came to our door and asked if he could use our driveway to practice learning to ride his new bike. His driveway led into the street, and ours ended in our yard…much safer!
He mounted his new bike with his sparkling spokes and was ready to take the plunge. Since I spend so much time coaching people, I couldn’t resist offering a couple tips: First, I had him start with the right pedal up so that he could get a good start. Second, I encouraged him to pedal hard while looking straight ahead. Don’t look down! He took off and was tempted to look down. I stopped him and yelled, “Keep looking straight ahead!” He did. He had a success and made it all way to the end of the driveway. We repeated it three times, and we had three good outcomes. There were no falls. He was excited, and ran in to tell his Mom and Dad.
My goal in coaching him was not to have him learn by mistakes, rather to grow from his successes. Let’s face it, falling off a bike isn’t too motivating for most people. The lesson learned here is while we may learn from our mistakes, we grow from our wins. Think about it: If the only way we learned was from making mistakes, then the person in Illinois who had the most traffic accidents would be considered the best driver. Would you want to drive with him/her?
Growth-oriented teams are not afraid to make mistakes
Several years ago I was working with a successful business owner (Joe) who was looking to expand his business considerably. He knew that meant hiring more people, and counting on them to be an extension of his beliefs in hard work, integrity, and doing things with excellence.
Moving forward, there was one thing that bothered Joe…Mistakes! When members of his team made a mistake, there was a tendency to blame others, make excuses, or “sugar coat” things. When any of these things would happen, solving the problem would become more difficult and the consequences would be more serious. Joe asked me to help him understand the resistance of his team members to own up to mistakes and report them quickly.
After talking with Joe’s team members, the cause of this problem became very apparent: Joe’s team was afraid to admit it when they made a mistake, and this fear caused them to hesitate coming forward. Joe is a “right-right” person and when his team members fell short with a customer, he would go into a fit.
When I reported my findings back to Joe, he said, “When I have a tantrum, I am not upset at someone, I am just mad we fell short with a customer.” I replied, “That may be so, but your people think you are mad at them.” Problem solved! We had a team meeting and Joe explained to his team what he had told me. His staff agreed to give Joe permission to have a tantrum when a mistake was made. Once he is finished letting off steam, they all get busy and solve the problem. Joe’s people are now quick to own up to to their errors and communicate them right away. These changes have led to a stronger, more confident, and collaborative team. They also have more fun!